The fall-out from routine testing for exotic animal diseases in Australian-bred cattle exported to Indonesia has again shown just how fractious the relationship between the two countries remains.
The issue came about - very rightly - because Indonesia sought to rule out whether or not lumpy skin disease detected in Australian-bred cattle had originated from Australia.
That's a fair question to be asked under any quarantine system and certainly a question Australia would be demanding answers to if there was a disease outbreak under similar circumstances on our shores.
Certainly there are questions about the timing of the testing of the cattle with suggestions the cattle had been in Indonesia for some 14 days before blood samples were taken.
If that is the case, then there is ample reason to believe the 13 cattle were possibly infected by biting insects carrying the LSD virus.
There is also a very strong argument that the testing simply detected the antibodies produced by the Australian-bred animals after they had been vaccinated on arrival in early July before being transported to feedlots.
However, there are also genuine questions being raised about the time Australia took to respond to the issue and just how seriously, and probably more importantly how respectfully, Indonesia's request for information was taken.
That is where Australia's too often tested relationship with Indonesia has again been exposed.
The damaging result is that four of Australia's 28 export facilities - two in the Northern Territory and one each in Queensland and the Western Australia - are now prohibited from sending cattle to our largest live export market.
We may be near neighbours and important trading partners, but Indonesia is not Australia.
The cultural, social and geo-political differences are massive, and it should be little surprise that Australians are not generally admired by our near neighbour.
Part of the problem is the real and perceived behaviour of Australians and other foreigners visiting Indonesia, and particularly Bali.
In a largely Muslim nation where larrikin behaviour and particularly larrikin behaviour fuelled by alcohol and drugs is considered grossly irresponsible, foreign tourists engaging in behaviours unacceptable by Indonesian standards have earned the derogatory and dismissive group title of 'bule'.
However, the bigger challenge in developing and maintaining a truly robust relationship between the two countries, at least at the trade level, remains the incredible damage caused by the 2011 ban on live export cattle to Indonesia.
In a catastrophic breach of trust, Australia acted as if it was an arrogant colonial overlord when with the stroke of pen by the former Gillard Government it cut off a major source of protein to Indonesia.
To add insult to injury, that action was later found to have been illegal in 2020, with former Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig ruled to have acted with misfeasance because he had acted unlawfully in a position of public office and the blanket ban had been invalid and capricious.
Unquestionably and thankfully, Australia remains free of both LSD and foot and mouth disease largely because of the vigilance and quarantine efforts a first world nation like Australia is able to employ.
That freedom from disease also requires a genuinely respectful working partnership with our near neighbours, and especially Indonesia, to provide a biosecurity barrier to those diseases.
Unfortunately and regrettably, Australia's treatment of Indonesia has seen that country become hypersensitive to Australia's actions making the task all that more difficult and a further erosion in the most fragile of all commodities, trust.
- Mark Phelps has been a regular visitor to South East Asia, including Indonesian livestock facilities, in the past two years.
The suspected presence of animal diseases should be reported to the Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline on 1800 675 888.
